TELECOM Digest Thu, 2 Mar 95 10:27:00 CST Volume 15 : Issue 127 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Book Review: "Mobile IP Networking" by Malamud et al (Rob Slade) Credit Checking on Cellular Customers (Steve Samler) Tired of S.314 Hysteria (Brad Hicks) ESF and Clear Channel (was: What is ESF (Fred Bauer) X.25 over ISDN - Addressing (Azriel Heuman) References Wanted on Benefits of Networking (Alice Weng) Turnkey Telephone Based Classified System Required (Richard Burry) Help Information Needed (Deepak Bapna) CallerID and Dialogic Board (Brian Tatro) Call For Tender ISDN Project Support (Marcel W.J. van Ruijven) ATM UNI 3.0 & 3.1 (Lionel Jaquet) Value ($) of Teltone TLS3 Telephone Line Simulator? (Jim Aust) Voice Mail Prompts (Alexis Kasperavicius) Re: Non-Published Phone Number and Privacy Act (Tony Harminc) Re: Non-Published Phone Number and Privacy Act (hihosteveo@aol.com) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and America On Line. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach us by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 500-677-1616 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************ * * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent- * * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************ * Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. A suggested donation of twenty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 01 Mar 1995 16:46:57 EST From: Rob Slade Subject: Book Review: "Mobile IP Networking" by Malamud et al CSMBIPNT.RVW 950113 "Mobile IP Networking", Malamud et al, 1993, 1-56592-994-2, U$9.95 %A Carl Malamud %A Phil Karn %A Jun Murai %C 103 Morris Street, Suite A, Sebastopol, CA 95472 %D 1993 %G 1-56592-994-2 %I O'Reilly & Associates/ORAudio %O U$9.95 800-998-9938 707-829-0515 fax: 707-829-0104 nuts@ora.com %P 60 min. %S Geek of the Week %T "Mobile IP Networking" These two Internet Talk Radio interviews were conducted in 1993. Phil Karn is the father of the KA9Q TCP/IP implementation, used for packet radio and various DOS applications. Jun Murai is founder of the Japanese WIDE Internet. The Karn interview talks a bit about KA9Q and mobile IP, but concentrates on encryption and privacy. Along the way, there is discussion of Clipper key escrow, PGP and the hybrid methods of data cryptography -- most, however related to mobile IP. Jun Murai starts by describing the situation at Keio University where all students have access to the network via a wired campus and wireless connections to laptops. VIP (Virtual Internet Protocol) and mobil IP are used in conjunction. He also speaks of the satellite multicast system in Japan. copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995 CSMBIPNT.RVW 950113. Distribution permitted in TELECOM Digest and associated publications. Rob Slade's book reviews are a regular feature in the Digest. Vancouver ROBERTS@decus.ca Institute for Robert_Slade@sfu.ca Research into rslade@cue.bc.ca User p1@CyberStore.ca Security Canada V7K 2G6 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 1 Mar 1995 19:45:43 EST From: Steve Samler Subject: Credit Checking on Cellular Customers I'm doing some research on credit check practices of cellular carriers and their agents. What is the common practice today when someone applies for cellular service? Credit check via one of the consumer credit agencies or via D&B if a business is the applicant? Is an additional credit check done if someone adds on a cellular modem? Is anyone using the practice of approving to a certain dollar limit and then cutting off service for the rest of the billing period if the limit is reached? How might today's practices be affected when cellular data (CDPD) is in more widespread use and the typical monthly bill is higher than today's? (You might say that it won't matter because CDPD won't be more widespread until the price is lower. Then it might not matter.) Any help is appreciated. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: A credit check is done, and a deposit equal to what the carrier estimates will be the charges for one or two months is required if the subscriber's credit rating is not up to the standards the carrier wants. I don't think it matters if you use a modem or not. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 01 Mar 1995 15:08:19 -0600 From: /G=Brad/S=Hicks/OU1=0205465@mhs-mc.attmail.com Subject: Tired of S.314 Hysteria Am I the only person tired of being spammed about S.314, or just the first one to complain about it? Do I have to read seven to ten copies of this in every newsgroup, even areas as obscure as alt.games.whitewolf? All this, on top of the maybe twenty or thirty copies I've gotten as e-mail? Can there possibly be anyone on the planet with an e-mail address who =doesn't= know about S.314? Now, that being said, I finally read one of the marked up copies of the current law, showing the changes that S.314 would make. And having read them, I am convinced that every single analysis I have read is either mistaken, exaggerated, or an outright lie. It's right there in the text. The section that everybody is scared of, the one that makes telecommunications vendors responsible for any obscenity or threats that swim in their bitstreams, is prefaced with "Whosoever KNOWINGLY ...." (Emphasis added.) That's right. They left in the word "knowingly." Which means that if somebody uses your BBS, or your email service, or your anonymous remailer to send someone an invitation to be the star in a pornographic snuff film, and you don't know about it, you're not in violation of the Exon bill. The easily alarmed might worry that some court will say that you =could= have known, and therefore =should= have known. But that's not up to prosecutors, that's up to juries. When witnesses testify as to how many kilobytes or megabytes flow through your system per night, no jury is going to say that you should have read it all. If you present evidence that you couldn't have known, because those bits were all encrypted and people didn't tell you what was in them, nobody's going to rule that you =could= have known, let alone =should= have. So. What do the people who oppose S.314 =and who understand it= REALLY want? The only reason I see to oppose S.314 is if you =want= BBS sysops and telephone sex vendors to be immune to obscenity and harrassment laws. If you want it to be legal for people to use email, or web pages, or improvised FidoNets or whatever to send around JPGs of perverts raping 6 year olds, or detailed descriptions of rape/murder/torture fantasies with people's real names for the victims, or GIFs of people having sex involving excrement, carving knives, and/or animals ... well, then say so! Because if that's what you want, then I agree with you 100%. As the late great Justice Hugo Black said, "I am a plain and simple man. I believe that when the Constitution says, 'no laws,' it MEANS 'no laws.'" Of course, there's no way that the American people will permit this. However, that's not, in my opinion, a moral reason to lie about the contents of a proposed law, and stir up a net.lynch.mob. J. Brad Hicks Internet: mc!Brad_Hicks@mhs.attmail.com X.400: c=US admd=ATTMail prmd=MasterCard sn=Hicks gn=Brad [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: When I ran the pieces on S.314 a week or more ago, I also had some second thoughts about whether or not I really wanted (a) to run it -- because it had appeared so many other places; and (b) because I was not really sure if I agreed with the claims of the petition's circulators. Now I don't make my own agreement or disagreement with something be the reason for publishing an item or not, so that pretty well answered (b). But as you point out, it had been appearing lots of places. The existence of the 'net.lynch.mob' in and of itself was worth commenting on. The 'knew or should have known' is going to be the key to the whole thing if S.314 passes. What that means of course is that AT&T, Sprint, MCI, Compuserve, AOL and the others with big name attornies who know how to properly suck up will be left alone while Joe Blow's BBS will be hounded and put out of business, because he cannot afford to fight the government and wouldn't know how to begin fighting anyway. It won't *really* have anything to do with what you knew, did not know or should have known. It will have everything to do with your status and where you are relative to your position near the bottom or top of the barrel we all spend all our lives trying to crawl out of. I suppose that if you run an anonymous remail service one could make the claim that, 'well, you really should have had a good idea what your client base was using you for ...' Likewise I imagine if you operate a site which seems to have an awful lot of 'incidents' in which users get their knuckles rapped from time to time over the content of their messages one could make the claim also that your traffic is not that great that the smut could repeatedly get past you undetected, in which case you 'knew or should have known', etc. And as you point out, the decision on who knew or should have known what is a decision made by a judge or jury, not a prosecutor. But that is all a very moot point: who has the *time and resources* to fight, whether you win or lose? I quite agree with you that the people putting out the anti-S.314 material might have shown a wee bit more intellectual honesty about what I suspect was the real intentions of many: as you pointed out, to make the hard core smut peddlers completely prosecution- and judgment- proof. Tom Lehrer, the Harvard mathemetician and comedian commented in one of his routines that people who like smut never actually come out and say so. They always couch their objections to laws against it in terms of the First Amendment. They prefer to speak theoretically about (perhaps) far-fetched conclusions which will result. How refreshing it would be to have someone simply say, "I love pictures of little boys doing the no-no thing, and I don't want laws forbidding me to possess or share the pictures with others." Now that would be a change, to forget the First Amendement b.s. and say where you are actually coming from. But as you point out, the public would never allow that; on the other hand, there are still sufficient numbers of people who (like myself) will support the First Amendment, at least when it suits them, so these discussions always wind up going in that direction. And thank you for your honesty, I might add. PAT] ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 1 Mar 95 10:50 EST From: Fred Bauer Subject: ESF and Clear Channel (was: What is ESF) In mjenning@ix.netcom.com (Michael Jennings) writes in part: > In addition, ESF typically is associated with "clear channel > capability" or, the ability for the user to take advantage of > the full 64 kb/s data rate of any of the 24 channels on the T1 > line. > Typically the "D4" type of framing requires that there be a > minimum number of logical "1's" being transmitted over the T1 > line. I know this has been covered before, and it's even alluded to in the rest of the original message, but I think that it is important enough to be stated very seperatly: **** There is (almost, see below) NO RELATION between the framing on a T1 and the ability to transmit clear channel data ***** When specifing a T1 Facility, there are two seperate, INDEPENDENT parameters that are in volved. The first is the LINE CODE, which specifies how the bits are encoded onto the copper line. This can be either AMI, or B8ZS. If the line code is AMI, then there is a requirement that there be at least 12.5% Ones in the data, and there be no more than 15 consecutive Zeros. Although you can run individual 64k channels on an AMI T1 (if the adjacent channels are unused) it is typically only used for voice and Nx56k data. If the line code is B8ZS, then there is no "Ones Density" requirement, and "clear channel" Data can be passed. Some equipment also supports a "line code" refered to as "BIT-7". This scheme uses AMI, but sets bit 7 to a one if an all zero byte comes through on any channel. (This is not reversed at the other end of the link, so this scheme is very unfriendly to most data). The second parameter is FRAMING. This can be either D4 (Also refered to as SF) or ESF. In some cases, an UNFRAMED T1 may also be specified. The framing is what is what allows the T1 to be broken down into 24 64k channels (DS0's), but has no bearing on what data can be put into the channels. As mentioned in another article in the same issue of the Digest, ESF provides many benefits over D4, and should probably be selected if your equipment supports it. The one time there is a relation between frmaing and line code/ones density is in the case of ZBTSI. This coding scheme operates on an AMI/ESF line (using some of the spare bits of the ESF framing) to allow for clear-channel transmissions on an AMI facility. This scheme is used when older transmission systems are in place (which will only support AMI) to provide clear channel capabilities. I hope this clarifies the (non) relation between framing and clear channel capabilities. Fred Bauer fbauer@access.digex.net Principal Engineer voice: +1.301.212.7067 LDDS/IDB Worldcom fax: +1.301.212.7055 ------------------------------ From: Azriel Heuman Subject: X.25 Over ISDN - Addressing Date: Thu, 2 Mar 1995 16:35:23 GMT Organization: Telrad Ltd. The ITU standards allow X.25 data calls over ISDN (both D and B channels) to use ISDN phone numbers (E.164) instead of X.25 addresses (X.121) even when the traffic transverses non-ISDN X.25 networks. Do any X.25 networks support this yet? Can someone from Sprint (Telenet) or other X.25 network providers shed some light on this subject? Please respond by E-mail! Best Regards, Azriel Heuman azi@mofet.elex.co.il ------------------------------ From: aweng@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Alice Weng) Subject: References For Benefits of Networking Date: 1 Mar 1995 12:38:41 GMT Organization: The Ohio State University I was wondering if anyone can help me. I am currently working on a grant proposal for the federal government. What we are proposing is a project that will network a number of programs for teenagers. We plan to have an on-line bulletin board system etc. However, I need some references as to the benefits of networking. For example, that it increases the number of resources assessable etc. These references cannot be too technical, it is not a technology grant. They need to be readible for the average graduate student in the social sciences (me). If you have no specific references, any suggestions of "subject words" to enter into a literature search? The ones that I know "telecommunication" and "networking" bring up over 500 listings. So I need something more specific. Any help is greatly appreciated!!! Alice Weng aweng@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 01 Mar 1995 09:39:18 -0500 From: Richard Burry Subject: Turnkey Telephone Based Classified System Required Hi folks. I'm looking into the requirements and cost of setting up a telephone based classified service. Features would include talking classifieds, messaging, and conferencing. I am specifically looking for a turnkey system that includes all the necessary hardware and software. Any information can be forwarded directly to my email address. If you are interested in this area, forward your name and I will be happy to compile all information received and pass it on to you. Thanks for you help. úÿ Richard Burry Director IS, CUC Broadcasting Suite 1300, 300 Consilium Place Scarborough, Ontario, Canada M1H 3G2 Voice 416-296-9966 Fax 416-296-7374 Email RBURRY@CUC.CA ------------------------------ From: Deepak Bapna Subject: Information Needed on Phased Array Communications Date: 01 Mar 1995 20:00:59 GMT Organization: Carnegie Mellon University Hi, I am looking for information on phased array communcations system. Let me first give an overview of the project we are working on. Overview: Lunar Rover Initiative In 1998, Carnegie Mellon University intends to land a pair of rovers on the Moon. The mission objectives are three-fold: 1) To demonstrate that educational institutions, with private corporate backing, can conduct useful space missions beyond Earth orbit; 2) To demonstrate that teleoperated rovers can work on the Moon for long periods of time (up to two years); 3) To return from the Moon a rich live video feed which can be used by the private sector, by lunar researchers, and by educational interests. A rich video feed is essential for this mission, since most of the science objectives are observatory in nature. =================== We need to transmit about 6 Mbit/sec continuously while the robots are travelling on moon. This makes mechanical pointing of the antenna (located on the robot) difficult and hence we are looking for electronic beam steering (and hence phased arrays). Any information about phased array systems (companies/contact names, phone number, existing systems for satellite applications, pointers to recent developments in technology, papers, conferences etc.) would be much appreciated. Since, I am not a regular reader of the netnews, please send me a mail (or give a call if your deals with phased arrays). Thanks a lot, Deepak Bapna Field Robotics Center Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Phone: (412) 268-7414 email: deepak@ri.cmu.edu ------------------------------ From: btatro@iquest.com (Tatro Enterprises) Subject: CallerID and Dialogic Board Date: 01 Mar 1995 20:27:43 GMT Organization: interQuest: Fuel for the Mind Hi all, I hope somebody here can point me in the right direction. I have a Dialogic 21D board with two lines, one for fax use and one for voicemail use. Would like to be able to have CallerID function with the voicemail system. Using Visual Voice development software bye Stylus Innovation. Qustion is, what is the fastest and cheapest way of having the CallerID information passed to the voicemail application. Can a modem be used to intercept the information and pass it on? Any information appreciated. Brian ------------------------------ From: m.w.j.vanruijven@telecom.ptt.nl (Marcel W.J. van Ruijven) Subject: Call For Tender ISDN Project Support Date: Wed, 01 Mar 95 17:38:33 PST Organization: PTT Telecom Netherlands Reply-To: m.w.j.vanruijven@telecom.ptt.nl From November 28-30, 1995 the ISDN event of the year will take place: Global 1995. It will be a world-wide event with show cases in different countries linked together via ISDN. Already 35 sponsors in Europe, Asia, Africa and America support the initative and now seek global support for a professional organisation. Three tenders are made available by the Gloabl '95 steering committee: - For administration - For promotion and communication - for project management For more information please ask for details via: Fax : +31 70 3816581 (Attn. Mr. A. Naftali) Internet: m.w.j.vanruijven@telecom.ptt.nl Requests for information should be in before March 7, 1995. Proposals should be in no later than March 10, 1995 Marcel W.J. van Ruijven PTT Telecom BV E-mail:M.W.J.vanRuijven@telecom.ptt.nl P.O. Box 30150 NL-2500 GD The Hague The Netherlands ------------------------------ From: Lionel JAQUET Subject: ATM UNI 3.0 & 3.1 Date: 02 Mar 1995 12:01:48 GMT Organization: MCNET InterNetNews site Hi, I'm searching for the ATM UNI 3.0 & 3.1 papers. I'm interested for LAN Emulation, ATM Virtual Routing and Q.2931, too. Does anybody know where on the net I can read and copy this information? In advance, thanks. Lionel.Jaquet@com.mcnet.ch ------------------------------ From: jimaust254@aol.com (JimAust254) Subject: Value ($) of Teltone TLS3 Telephone Line Simulator? Date: 01 Mar 1995 14:17:34 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) Reply-To: jimaust254@aol.com (JimAust254) I have a Teltone model TLS3 Telephone Line Simulator about two years old and I paid $450 for it. What's it worth today?? Jim Austin JimAust254.AOL.COM ------------------------------ From: alexis@news.cinenet.net (Alexis Kasperavicius) Subject: Voice Mail Prompts Date: 01 Mar 1995 20:50:31 -0800 Organization: Cinenet Communications,Internet Access,Los Angeles;310-301- 4500 I have spoken with the lady who is the "voice" of AT&T - she says "Thank You for using AT&T" -- "We're sorry..." -- A famous voice and a really nice lady. I am going to be recording her in a digital studio for a voice mail project in about one month and doing all the basic prompts required for a voice mail system as well as all basic intercept announcements. My thought is, since there are SO MANY bad prompt sets out there, to do a decent, clean prompt set that covers voice mail, basic IVR applications, Bank-by-phone, Credit Card Debiting, intercepts, CLASS,and coin announcements. All numbers, dates, etc -- recorded in a STUDIO, digitally -- not with a handset microphone in a noisy equipment room. All edited cleanly and available on a CD-ROM in digital format. I am a sound editor in Hollywood and do a lot of video games so I have access to a CD Writer and digital editing equipment. This will be done correctly. However, I would like some input. If any of you have done a voice mail or IVR prompt set, send me the script. I'd like to cover as many prompts as I can. I would also like to come up with a standard file name format for a standard set of prompts so we don't have the mishmash of filenames that currently exist. If you know of an existing "standard" file name format please let me know. I know that in C.O.'s there are huge drum tape machines that play the intercept announcements. What do you C.O. guys use to get recordings onto these things? For IVR guys, what digital file format do you use? I would probably put the files on the CD in 44khz 16bit Mono .aiff and include a utilty to convert to .wav, and Dialogic formats in whatever sampling rate you wish.What other formats should be included? Should the CD be playable as a CD? What do you want? I will also include all Telco progress tones, DTMF signals, MF signals,all foreign ring signals. All clean, all perfect. I think this would be a valuable tool for anyone in the IVR industry or anyone wanting to play around. I'm doing this because I occasionaly build IVR systems and would really like to have a set like this. I have the equipment and know the best voice in the country. Also, I think it will be fun. The CD would be sold for a reasonable flat flee with no additional license fee required. I will, of course, send one to anyone who helps out. So ... dig around. Find those scripts! THINK about it. This thing will save you countless hours of frustration if it's done correctly. And your customers will LOVE it! I did a set with her and replaced just the prompt set on a voice mailsystem -- nothing else -- the complaints dissapeared. I actually had people ask me what I had done to make the voice mail system "so easy to use." If you still don't know the voice I'm talking about - pick up your phone and dial 10288 - 0700 - 881-4812. (Just listen to the prompt voice - the thing is forwarded to a non-existent number in Lithuania.) Responses, anyone? Alexis Kasperavicius alexis@hollywood.cinenet.net ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 01 Mar 95 22:07:31 EST From: Tony Harminc Subject: Re: Non-Published Phone Number and Privacy Act rhiggins@carroll1.cc.edu (Ron Higgins) wrote: > Our local telephone company is planning a 900% (900 percent) increase > in the rate that it charges for a non-published, non-listed telephone > number on a monthly basis. And that is on top of the "*67" that I > have to dial to stop my number from being transmitted by Caller ID. A handy way around ever increasing unlisted number charges is to get a distinctive ringing (or whatever your local telco calls it -- Identa Ring, Identa Call, Teenagers' Line...) number on your existing line. Many telcos will not publish (or make available via DA) the second or third numbers - in fact you may have to pay them if you do want a listing. Let them list the 'main' number, treat the second number as your real one, and ignore calls to the main one. You can get a ring detect box if you expect lots of calls on the main number that you don't want to even ring your bell. In many areas that second number costs much less than unpublished service. Tony Harminc ------------------------------ From: hihosteveo@aol.com (HiHoSteveo) Subject: Re: Non-Published Phone Number and Privacy Act Date: 2 Mar 1995 00:20:32 -0500 Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364) Reply-To: hihosteveo@aol.com (HiHoSteveo) PAT is correct -- what privacy act? This is not a privacy issue, but an administrative issue by LEC tariff. Sorry about that. ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V15 #127 ******************************